also hodge podge, hodge-podge, early 15c., hogpoch, alteration of hotchpotch (late 14c.) “a kind of stew,” especially “one made with goose, herbs, spices, wine, and other ingredients,” earlier an Anglo-French legal term (late 13c.) meaning “collection of property in a common ‘pot’ before dividing it equally,” from Old French hochepot “stew, soup,” first element from hocher “to shake,” from a Germanic source (such as Middle High German hotzen “shake”).

Well, there is no goose involved, but there is a chicken, and this is quite a stew of things. As Deb was out of town on Friday for a family thing, I flew solo this weekend. I didn’t see a whole lot of fun stuff, so I have mined the depths for pix.

Friday was the last day school for the summer intern, so I skipped the thrifts and went to see The First Annual Polaris Cardboard Regatta. I am happy to say he and his co-captain were the only two-man boat NOT to sink to the briny deep.

Notice the sign on the back of the boat. They didn’t get any takers on the ad space, probably because of the limited shelf life! All boats were soaked, most to the point of pure disintegration, and recycled after a day of fun.

Much of this post consists of things I knew Deb needed to see. I was pretty sure she needed to OWN this next item, but being the cheapo at heart that I am, she isn’t getting it:

The first poodle seems to be saying “watch yo talkin’ bout?” Guess he was just told that he was a pink light-up poodle. I can just see this gracing the lovely pink and black TV room of the ’50s housewife. The husband just retreated to the garage in self-defense.

This next item was cheaper, but with great restraint, we are both trying NOT to buy more dishes, especially SETS of dishes, so I didn’t buy it for her. She will probably kill me. At first I thought this was Melmac, but it turned out to be nice stoneware:

The name of the pattern was “Tickled Pink”. I know I was.

At the same sale I picked out this set:

I have a small thing for chickens, but I try to never indulge. Hubby tried to take the place of Deb, and pointed out how much bigger my new kitchen is, and it was only $20. I resisted, and later at home, I showed him how full the cupboards already are. I have to save room for the “must haves”!!!!

While we are in the barnyard, this cow just made me smile:

What cow wouldn’t be cross eyed with a ladybug on his nose? This is way cuter than our neighbor’s cow that they have named Barbecue. Poor thing, I think it is unfair to give the animal a complex, and then eat him.

I was delighted to see this next offering still in the package:

Just think of all the bad macrame we have been spared by this pristine pile of cord. Let us hope no one found a vintage book and the time to put it to use, or we will be right back where we started from.

Yet again, we venture to the deep blue ocean for the shell delight of the day:

A whole bouquet of shelly flowers! This was seriously a lot of work and pretty well done. I can’t imagine how much space in the suitcase had to be allotted to it. Maybe it was a carry-on? You have to see how nicely this was done:

I think I am seriously slipping, but I didn’t buy it, even though I was intrigued. Good thing Deb doesn’t leave me on my own too often. Who knows what would happen.

But these would NEVER happen:

We tend to like the little plaster fishies that swam in the pink bathrooms of yesteryear, but these aquatic denizens have some real body problems. They look like fish with girdles and lipstick. Maybe the woman of the house needed to be inspired every morning. Not that I think this would make you pour yourself into a girdle, but whatever floats your boat.

Well, Deb’s home and Friday beckons. Who knows what is out there just waiting to be found? If you find something awful that needs to be shared, don’t forget to send the photo to our email. We will be glad to make fun of it, and give you credit for the find!